Запретной любви
by Usaagi
Summary: When Ivan Braginski moves to America with his strict father, he attends high school and soon becomes friends with a young boy named Alfred Jones, when their friendship turns into something a little more, Ivan's father is not happy.  Russia x America
1. Chapter 1

"_Vanya"_ a voice from his memories echoed in his mind, _"Vanya your sister has made you a scarf, why don't you try it on, dear"_, _the little boy frowned he didn't want to try on the scarf, but he did so to please his mother. _

_"It's itchy, da" the boy complained, his mother just laughed _

_"Being itchy is better than being cold, Vanya". _His mother's voice was so soft, the now 14 year old boy touched the scarf that was wrapped around his neck, it seemed a like a lifetime ago when he was given that scarf, and he was about to leave all those memories behind in Russia. He was sad about leaving his elder sister behind, she was very close to him, his younger sister however sometimes reminded him of his father; she was his father's favourite and was spoilt. He couldn't count how many birthday gifts she received whilst he had nothing on his last birthday. His elder sister wasn't treated with much more respect than he was, but he never laid a finger on her. Ivan was beaten regularly; he shuddered at the memory of his last beating, the bruises on his ribs stung whenever he got dressed or just brushed up against something.

Ivan sat in the departure lounge at the airport in Moscow, he had never been on a plane before, and in fact he had never even left his homeland once. His father on the other hand was a Russian diplomat, of course his duty was to represent Russia abroad, and so Ivan's mother looked after the three children in Russia, but when Ivan's mother had died his father had to stay located in Russia to look after Katyusha, Ivan and Natalia. Because Ivan's father was never around when he was little he had never got to know the man very well…they did not share a normal father-son bond. He remembers his father as a distant and scary man, very different to his loving and caring mother.

Words could not describe how Ivan felt when his mother became ill, she promised him that she would get better, but she lied. Somewhere in Ivan's heart, he always knew she would never recover, he was quite young but not young enough to not understand what was going on. He was only ten years old, Katyusha at the time was fifteen, Natalia was four years old and too young to comprehend. Ivan watched his mother die slowly, everyday deteriorating in health even though she always told him she was feeling better, and she would force a smile on her face just for him; Ivan felt tears prickle in his eyes, the vision of his dying mother still burned onto his brain.

"Ivan, you're going to America, you're going to need to toughen up. Do you hear me?" His father's voice pierced through his thoughts,

"Da" Ivan replied not looking directly at his father instead watching the crowds of people in the airport. His father suddenly grabbed hold of his jaw and yanked Ivan's face so that he was looking straight at his father's own face

"Listen boy, you will look at me when I talk to you, understand?" the tone in his father's voice sounded poisonous. The tight grip on his jaw hurt badly, Ivan nodded

"Da, papa" he replied trying to keep his cool. He never understood why his father disliked him so much, was there something terribly wrong with him? He never knew. His father treated him like shit. Ivan never met up to his father's high standards; he tried so hard in school only to have received a high B grade and then have his father tear his homework into shreds and be belted for not doing well enough.

_Why_ did he have to go to America with his father… he wouldn't have even minded going that much if Katyusha and Natalia were coming with him, but Katyusha's English was very poor and his father told her very rudely that she would get no-where in the USA and be a nobody_ "You're a disgrace to me, you're a dumb bitch, no daughter of mine"_ was his harsh words. Ivan was furious, Katyusha cried. Katyusha was more suited for caring and looking after people just like Ivan's mother had been, and so she was ordered to stay in Russia and look after the eight year old Natalia. Ivan's English wasn't the best either but he had grasped the basics of the language; he was scared about going to school in a country where he would have a hard time understanding and communicating with his classmates. However, his father had told him that he had potential to be something better and that he wanted him to move to America with him. Ivan was stunned when his father actually told him he had potential, it was probably the only time in his life where he had complimented his son. Ivan could not refuse his father, and so he _had_ to go.

The loud speaker announced that the passengers for Ivan's flight were ready to board. Ivan could see out of the big glass window as he walked to the gate, he saw the aircraft outside and looked at it with fascination as he had never been to an airport or seen an airplane up close. Ivan and his father made their way to the boarding gate, Ivan copied his father's actions; he showed the security guard his passport and ticket and was allowed onto the airplane. As he sat down on the window seat he looked out, it was dark outside but he could see the lights, he felt a mixture of excitement and sadness, as he was leaving his homeland. Ivan's father sat beside him, not paying any attention at all to his son. As the engines fired up, Ivan felt a tinge of anxiousness in his stomach, he continued to look out of the small window, and watched the plane as it climbed upwards into the sky, seeing all the lights of Moscow below him, it was a beautiful sight. The next time he would see daylight would be in America.


	2. Chapter 2

It was late in America when Ivan arrived, the time difference confused him. He was quite upset that he wouldn't get to have a look around at his new surroundings until tomorrow morning. Ivan's father had barely said more than two words to him on the twelve hour flight to Washington D.C, but Ivan was used to it…it's not like he expected his father to care about him but the young boy just couldn't help feeling alone and scared. Ivan was jet lagged and the tiredness was almost too much for him to cope with as he waited for his luggage to come though, _why does it have to take so long, da…_ He prayed that they had not left his suitcase behind in Russia; it had all of his most treasured belongings inside. Finally, after waiting around half an hour the luggage started to come through, Ivan lifted his large suitcase off of the conveyer belt with some difficulty, he was a very tall boy for his age but his suitcase was overweight what with all of his possessions crammed inside just one. Ivan's father's suitcase followed shortly after and they made their way to the exit of the busy airport.

It was past midnight, and apparently Ivan's father had hired a driver to take them to their new home. Ivan knew that his father was rich, but Ivan himself was never given any money. Ivan saw a black car with blacked out windows, "Come on boy" he heard his father say as his father made his way over to the car.

"Hello, sir" the driver greeted, Ivan could see fear in the driver's eyes, Ivan understood why, his father was a scary man. The driver had blond hair and wore glasses, Ivan's father nodded at the Estonian man, who went by the name of Eduard von Bock. The driver lifted both suitcases into the boot of the car and Ivan got into the back of the car which had black leather seats. He didn't often travel by car, normally if he wanted to go anywhere he would go by bus or just simply walk, it felt nice to be in such an expensive car. Ivan leaned against the window and his eye lids started to feel very heavy, he closed them and took a small nap. It didn't seem like he had slept very long, but he was awoken by Eduard who patted him lightly on the shoulder

"Um, Ivan is it?" the Estonian asked, Ivan opened his violet and eyes and blinked a few times

"Da" Ivan answered, forgetting to answer in English

"Your father wishes you to follow him inside" the Estonian continued

"Spasibo, uh I mean thank you" Ivan rubbed his eyes and got out of the car. He entered his new home, well technically it wasn't a house it was an apartment but it was big for an apartment and he knew this is where rich people would normally live. His house back in Russia wasn't terrible but it was nothing compared to _this_. Somehow he preferred simple things; a nice house that had a cosy feeling, this apartment was modern and lifeless.

"Right come over here, Ivan I'll show you your bedroom". Ivan followed his father down the corridor keeping his distance as usual. His father opened the door and revealed a nice sized bedroom. "Right now get to sleep; I don't want to see you again for the rest of the night." His father said coldly

"Da, papa" Ivan said obediently, he lifted his suitcase into his new room and sat on the bed, he didn't like his new room one bit. It was so empty. In his old bedroom he had pictures that he had drawn stuck on his wall he always seemed to draw sunflowers. This room had an unwelcoming feeling about it, however he turned to the window, he was quite high up in the apartment and had a nice view of a park.

The first thing he decided to do was take out the most important things from his suitcase; he rummaged through it and came across a framed photograph. It was of him as a young child with his mother. He smiled softly at the picture, he had remembered it being taken, it was on a cold winter's day in Moscow there was snow all around…His mother wore a thick fur coat with a Russian hat and he was also wearing a heavy coat, he was holding his mother's hand looking very happy. Katyusha had taken the photograph; it was before Nat had been born…he must have been about three or four years old, it was a decade old. He placed it on his bedside table; he then took out another picture that wasn't in a frame. It was of his two sisters, he stuck it above his bed on the wall, laughing to himself gently as he remembered how Natalia had reacted when he told her he was leaving Russia "No Ivan! You can't go! I don't want you to go! I won't allow it" she clung onto his arm tightly and didn't let go "Papa says I have to, I'm sorry Natasha" he said sadly, but there was always something about his little sister that unnerved him a little, he then shuddered at the thought. Ivan took out a few more of his belongings and then found himself lying on his bed. I guess he was more tired than he thought, his eyes were heavy with sleep again as he had not slept properly on the plane because it was too uncomfortable and just the sheer excitement of being on the airplane prevented him from sleeping, and so he found himself drifting off, he hadn't even removed his clothes, scarf or shoes and he was asleep in a matter of minutes.

Ivan's father decided to go and check on his son. When he opened the door he saw that Ivan was spread across his bed still fully clothed and fast asleep. His father merely stood at the door for a few moments, and then decided to walk in "I see he hasn't unpacked much" he muttered looking at the suitcase, he walked over to the bedside table, seeing a photograph. The large man took the photo frame into his hands; it was his late wife and Ivan. The man was not completely heartless, he did love his wife…he stared at it, his face lacked emotion but he had a tinge of sadness looking at her. He then sighed and placed the photo back down, he then left the room "Good night" he said almost inaudibly. Ivan was currently suffering from a nightmare; he had been worrying about going to an American school. Firstly, he didn't even fit in that well at the school in his homeland and only had a few friends, secondly, his English was not too good, and thirdly, he was Russian and he knew that he would be bullied and teased for being a "commie". He knew that Americans hated communists, despite Russia wasn't even communist now and nor was Ivan. His father on the other hand was very against America, he despised Americans and worshipped Soviet Russia and communism; Ivan knew that before he was born and before his father became a diplomat he had been high up in the ranks of the KGB back in the days of the USSR, and still held loyalty to it. Ivan didn't like the idea of communism but he would never tell his father that otherwise he would be beaten. Ivan tossed and turned a little in his sleep, dreaming that he went to the school and the pupils hated him and even the teachers. He was segregated from the rest of the school and everybody ran from him as if he had some sort of disease, when he awoke from the nightmare he could see rays of sunlight shining through his window, he sat up and wiped the sweat from his forehead, he hoped that he would at least make one friend to make high school slightly more bearable.


	3. Chapter 3

"ALFREEEED!" the distinct British accent yelled, causing the American boy to jump slightly. The obnoxious teenager was yet again in trouble, he wondered what it would be about _this_ time. Alfred sauntered into the kitchen, where his father was at.

"Yo, what's up?" he asked casually, causing the English man's blood pressure to go up just a notch.

"What is this!" his father slammed down a piece of paper onto the kitchen table, Alfred looked at it, it was his report card and it had a large "F" written in red on the top,

"That would be my report card" Alfred replied, giving his father the "duh" look. The boy's father slapped his hand against his forehead, _why does he have to be so difficult…_he thought.

"Yes. I know that, Alfred" the angry man began, taking deep breaths

"Dude, calm down!" Alfred interrupted

"Alfred just shut up. And do not refer to me as "dude". Now, can you explain to me why the hell you have failed?" the English man decided to cut to the chase, his voice getting louder. Alfred looked down; he didn't know why he failed. He guessed it was because he didn't bother to study, like always… _Crap, I'm in trouble…I know! I'll give him the puppy dog eyes; he can't stay angry at me when I make that face. _Alfred looked up again, giving his dad the cutest puppy dog look ever

"I'm sorry dad, I really am…next time I swear I'll do better!" for just one second the English man looked sympathetic but then suddenly his face hardened

"I'm not falling for that again! I'm grounding you for a week" he said sternly,

"WHAT! That's so not fair!" Alfred shouted stamping his foot down for good measure, he could be such a child sometimes

"Stop being so ridiculously childish, you're fourteen years old for god sake not four, and yes it is fair, you're lucky it's not for a month. Now go to your room" he pointed to the stairs,

"No way! This is just _so_ stupid!" Alfred didn't give up a fight that easily

"Alfred Jones, you will go to your room this instant" he was fuming, his face turning an angry red; Alfred was sure his father had anger management issues…

"You can't treat me like a little kid, I'm outta here!" Alfred shouted, and ran to the front door,

"ALFRED GET BACK HE-" Arthur cut his sentence short at the sound of the front door slamming shut. "What am I going to do with him…" he muttered in defeat.

Alfred stormed down the street, _this just sucks…and I'm hungry, but I can't go back there until my dad has calmed down…like a lot. But maybe…_Alfred's thoughts paused briefly to check his pocket for money _I can just buy some fast food!_ _Better than that yucky British food he cooks…_Alfred shuddered and headed to his favourite place in the whole world, McDonalds.

* * *

><p>Ivan lay on his bed staring blankly at the ceiling, really it was so boring. He missed the company of his two sisters greatly. Ivan sighed, since he had been in America he had not really had time to look around, he turned his head to face the window. His father wouldn't be back for a few hours, so he decided he would take a walk around. The boy got up and wrapped his treasured scarf around his neck, it was quite cold outside as winter was on its way, but it was ok, since living in Russia had made him accustom to the harsh weather. Ivan paused for a second after closing the door to the apartment, he hoped his father wouldn't mind him leaving for a walk; he didn't really want to get beaten though…he still had the painful bruises from the last beating. Ivan convinced himself that his father probably wouldn't even care and went to the elevator, he pressed the button to go to the ground floor. He stepped outside and was greeted with a cool breeze; he smiled softly and made his way down the street. America was quite different from Russia, the buildings had different architecture. Ivan looked upwards admiring how tall they were, the buildings were stories high! His observing was cut short however, when suddenly he hit something. He turned suddenly and saw someone holding a large brown paper bag which obscured half of his face because of its size, the other bag he had been holding had fallen to the floor, the contents spilling out into the street<p>

"Hey! Watch where you're going!" the boy shouted angrily, quickly trying to save his beloved meal… Ivan was shocked,

"I'm very sorry, da" he blushed in embarrassment, he bent down to help the boy pick up his food, he did notice that there was _a lot_ of this stuff, surely it couldn't all be for himself? _Probably for his family, da…I have just ruined their meal!" _Ivan worried.

Alfred frowned slightly; this guy had a weird accent. "You talk funny" he said bluntly looking up at this moron who had just made him drop his McDonalds…well half of it. Alfred was slightly shocked by the height of this boy, he looked around the same age as himself, but he was so much taller…

Ivan blinked a few times, the boy in front of him wore glasses, and behind those glasses he saw a pair of angry blue eyes,

"Da…" Ivan said, he watched the boy's face and saw his confusion, he quickly processed a sentence in his mind that the American would understand "Uh, sorry, I mean…yes, I am not a local, I am from another country and arrived here a few days ago" he hoped that made sense, there was a slight pause for a few moments, and the American boy smiled which surprised Ivan

"Nice to meet ya! I'm Alfred" he said cheerfully, Ivan was confused…had he not just bumped into this boy and cause him to drop his food? Well, he had managed to save the food before it got contaminated too much so he guessed the boy couldn't be that angry at him

"I'm Ivan Braginski" Ivan greeted himself, giving the boy a crooked smile and holding out his gloved hand, but then realized Alfred didn't have a free hand to return the gesture,

"Sorry, I'm kinda…occupied" he laughed quite loudly, it was a very annoying laugh, and Ivan didn't really get what was so funny…maybe it was an American thing. Alfred looked at the foreign boy's blank expression, and then caught a whiff of the McDonalds "Um, hey…you want some?" Alfred didn't normally share his food, in fact, he _never_ did, he didn't even know why he was offering a complete stranger some of his precious McD's but he just did. He guessed he was just doing the right thing by being friendly; Ivan was not even from around here and probably didn't have any friends.

Ivan was happily surprised by Alfred's friendly attitude; he had been terrified of what his father had said about Americans hating Russians…obviously, his father was wrong. "Da I would like that" he replied, the two of them walked down the street together, Alfred rummaging through one of the bags for a burger to give to Ivan.

_Ivan Breegunska? What type of name is that…! Heck, I don't think I can even pronounce it, why can't everyone in the world have American names…? _Alfred handed Ivan a burger

"Thank you" he said, _this is fast food, da…Papa won't be happy_ Ivan thought, but he didn't really care, his father wasn't here right now so he could eat what he wanted. All his life he had been made to eat cabbage soups and borsht and other Russian dishes, not that he was complaining he loved his mother's cooking, but he always wished to try food from other cultures, like pasta, or a hamburger but his father had strictly forbid that. Finally, he could taste a burger…Ivan turned to his new American friend, who was taking huge bites from his own burger.

"I freaking love this food!" he said, not caring that his mouth was full, Ivan giggled and then tried some of the burger. He did not like the taste of it at all, it was so different to what he was used to; he always thought he would enjoy it. He finished eating it however, not wanting to be rude to his new friend who had sacrificed his favourite food for him. Ivan thought it best to check his watch; he was alarmed to find that he had already been out an hour… he needed to be back at the apartment before his father returned from work.

"Alfred, I'm sorry but my father would be angry if I am not home, I hope you do not mind if I leave, da" Ivan said,

"Huh? Oh sure dude, I understand" _Crap, I totally forgot about dad…I hope he's cooled off…_ Ivan smiled down at his new friend, while walking to the entrance of his apartment, Alfred saw how ritzy the place was "Holy crap, you live here?" he gasped

"Da that is correct" Ivan frowned,

"Dude, you must be really rich…"

"Ah, well, my father is I suppose…" Ivan looked down, and then looked up at the speechless American boy "Alfred, thank you for being so friendly. I did not expect for an American to be so, uh" Ivan paused to think of the right word "…accepting. Since I am from Russia and know of the tensions between your country and my country" Ivan smiled down at Alfred whose eyes widened slightly

"Wait…you're from Russia?" Alfred wrinkled his nose slightly, Ivan was confused, surely he could tell he was Russian? Maybe not...Ivan suddenly panicked "Well, I guess…you're pretty cool for a Russian dude…" Alfred finally said, normally he would have called him a commie or something but Ivan seemed…nice. Alfred did get just a little strange feeling about the boy, and now that he knew he was Russian well…that explained it.

"Ah, spasibo" Ivan gleamed, "It means thank you" he quickly added

"No problem, anyways, I better go too! My dad is really mad with me" Alfred explained, Ivan nodded and waved as Alfred turned and began to rush back home. Ivan was sure that Alfred's father's standards of being angry were no match for his own father's, and he sure hoped not.


	4. Chapter 4

When Ivan got back inside his father was already there. "Where have you been?" his father asked at the sound of the front door opening, he didn't look up from the documents he was reading.

"I went to look around the neighbourhood" Ivan replied,

"You are supposed to ask my permission, I am your father" his father's cold eyes snapped a glace towards Ivan, "Did you talk to anyone?"

"Nyet" Ivan lied; it probably wasn't a good idea to tell his father he had befriended an American boy

"Good. I don't want you mixing in with the wrong sort, understand me?" Ivan nodded, he supposed what his father meant by 'wrong sort' was the type of boy Alfred was. The tall teen decided it was just best to get out of his father's way; he went into his bedroom and lay down on his bed. He didn't have a television or computer, or anything in there, so instead he just reflected on his day, and then began to think of what his first day at an American high school would be like…hoping it was nothing like his previous dream.

* * *

><p>The following Monday Ivan awoke from a good night's sleep. He got dressed in his usual clothes, a thick sweater and some brown pants; he topped off his outfit with his treasured scarf that he always wore. He couldn't deny the fact that he was nervous about going to school, and he knew he would get little support from his father on the matter.<p>

"Ivan!" he heard his father call from the kitchen.

"Da, I'm coming papa" Ivan replied, walking to the kitchen

"My driver Eduard will take you to school; this will be the case every day." His father spoke, "He will also pick you up when school finishes" Ivan nodded, was it really necessary for the driver to escort him to and from school? Probably not, but Ivan didn't bother questioning his father.

Ivan left the apartment and went down the elevator; the same black car that had driven him from the airport waited outside, the blond man with glasses stood by the door.

"Morning" Eduard nodded, and opened the door for Ivan to get into the back.

"Good morning" Ivan stepped in, anticipating the journey to the school. It didn't take too long to get there; there was no reason for him to be chauffeured around like this. He could have easily walked; it would have taken no more than fifteen minutes or so.

Ivan got out of the car and approached the large building; he tightened the scarf around his neck and walked in. The Russian was instantly overwhelmed at the crowds of students, it was loud, very _loud_. He walked through the hallway, people glancing and staring at him, some whispered things as he passed by. He noticed how he was taller than everyone here, making him stand out even more. He suddenly felt very lonely; did everyone really have to stare at him like that? As if he was some kind of alien. Ivan decided to ignore them; he took out his map of the school and tried to navigate his way to his first class.

Suddenly he felt a harsh pat on the shoulder; he turned around wondering who he was going to come face to face with, a wide smile spread across his face when he recognised the boy as Alfred.

"Hey! Ivan! I didn't know you went here" Alfred beamed

"It is my first day today" Ivan explained

"That's awesome, where's your first class?" Alfred questioned

Ivan looked down at his timetable "It is history in room 202" Ivan looked around to see if that room was anywhere nearby,

"Ooh cool we share the same class! Just follow me dude" Ivan nodded, and followed the blond.

Ivan took a seat beside his lively friend in the classroom, waiting for it to begin. Of course the teacher had to announce there was a new student among them; Ivan didn't really feel like talking in front of everyone but didn't have much choice

"Today class we have a new student, would you like to introduce yourself, Ivan?" she spoke

Ivan nodded, remaining polite like his mother had taught him to be, and would have wanted. "My name is Ivan Braginski, I come from Russia" Ivan explained in a thick accent, the class began to whisper and turned to face the tall teen with curiosity.

After the class settled down the teacher began to get on topic; she stated the subject for the next few weeks was going to be on the 'Cold War'. Many people turned to look at Ivan again at the mention of the Cold war, and he began to feel awkward and out of place.

"I want you to do your research on this class; you will work with your partner and create a presentation to give to the class"

"YES! We get to learn about nuclear bombs and shit" Alfred exclaimed excitedly

"Alfred, watch your language please. And I think you will find that the Cold War was not just about bombs"

Alfred pouted, as far as he was concerned that was all he cared about.

After class had finished Alfred addressed Ivan, "Hey, so you wanna come back to my house to work on this presentation?"

Ivan knew this was going to be a problem; he highly doubted that his father would allow him to go back to Alfred's home… "Alfred I do not know if I can" he said, as he gathered up his books

"What? Why not?!" Alfred was confused

"It is my father" Ivan said,

"But we're gonna fail otherwise!" Alfred huffed, this was crazy…why didn't his dad let him do anything?

"We could work in the library?" Ivan questioned

"No way, we wouldn't be allowed to talk…how about I come back to yours?" Alfred raised an eyebrow in expectation

Ivan thought about it, he didn't know what to do. Finally, he nodded slowly "Da…I suppose…"

"Yay, awesome! Well catch you later!" with that, the young American ran off to his next class, Ivan was left to stare at the empty space where the blond had once stood. He mentally cursed. This wasn't going to end well.


End file.
